What's happening in HISD

Almost 80 bus routes impacting more than 3,750 students across the district have been updated this week and six major bus stops in west, south, and southwest Houston are being reinstated.

The changes are part of Transportation Services continued efforts to review and streamline operations, improve services, increase efficiency, and ensure all students arrive at school each day safely and on time.

“The changes we’re making might seem incremental, but they’re all important,” HISD Transportation Services Interim General Manager John Wilcots IV said. “Each update we make increases our operational efficiency, but more importantly, it helps us provide better service to our students.”

The six stops will be reinstated on Monday, Nov. 26, allowing students to begin using them when they return from Thanksgiving Break. The stops are located at the below intersections. Students assigned to these stops will be notified.
• Sapling Way and Gustine Lane
• Chevery and Summerlyn drives
• Waldemar and Bentworth drives
• Rampart Street and Glenmont Drive
• Kelling Street and Waterloo Drive
• Briarwest Boulevard and Briarwest Circle

Reinstating these stops will better accommodate families in the area by reducing travel distance, as well as wait and ride times, Wilcots said, noting that his team was continuing to review routes in neighborhoods across the district.

Additionally, the department continues to implement the Student Badge Program, which is designed to help the district track ridership and utilization of buses and routes, while also allowing parents to track when their child gets on and off the bus — enhancing efficiency and safety across the system.

Parents who want to receive alerts when their students get on and off the bus must sign up through ZPass. Parents who need help setting up an account can review step-by-step instructions posted online at www.HoustonISD.org/Transportation.

“We’re seeing an increasing number of students scanning badges every day,” Wilcots said. “Students are really embracing the program. I was at Mandarin Immersion Magnet School this week and watched as every single student scanned their badge as they got off the bus.”

The department also is continuing to recruit bus drivers and magnet hub safety monitors. The department is hosting its eighth job fair from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Nov. 10, 2018, at Booker T. Washington High School, 4204 Yale St. Interested candidates should apply online ahead of time at www.DriveHISD.org